Motorcycle crash victims still critical

The two motorcycle crash victims from the Saturday midnight head-on collision on Woodward Avenue west of McKinley Avenue are still listed in critical condition in hospitals in Sacramento and Modesto.

They have both had multiple surgeries to repair their badly damaged limbs and have been interviewed by Detective Sergeant Tony Souza as to their recollections of the crash where they actually sideswiped each other.

Shari Dugodansby, 47, of rural Ripon, was reportedly on her way to visit a friend in a mobile home at Turtle Beach near the Islander Bar, Souza said. He noted that she remembers riding down Woodward Avenue toward the former location of the water slides, but remembers nothing at all about the accident. The next thing she remembers was waking up in the hospital, he said.

Souza quoted her as saying she wasn’t riding fast, because the road was bumpy.

The other rider, Frank Ferreira, 45, of Manteca, was riding eastbound at the time of the crash and was found to be well over the legal alcohol limit in his blood, Souza said. The officer added that Ferreira and his family were being very cooperative with police in the investigation and they all showed remorse for what happened.

Souza said Ferreira won’t be in any shape to face DUI charges in court for many weeks to come. He is employed at a hardware store distribution center in Lathrop where employees are presently collecting donations to help with his medical care.

Souza added that both riders stayed with their bikes after the crash laying them down in the street. The woman slid for about 100 feet and he and his bike went about 150 feet before slamming into a telephone pole. Witnesses in the SUV that he was attempting to pass on the roadway estimated his speed to police at 60 to 65 miles an hour.

The detective also stated that Dugodansby is lucky to be alive because she was not wearing a Department of Transportation (DOT) approved crash helmet. She had only something that looked like a pot on her head.

Dugodansby was airlifted by helicopter and taken to Doctors Medical Center in Modesto while Ferreira was transported by ambulance to San Joaquin County General Hospital in French Camp. In the early hours Sunday morning he was transported to the U.C. Davis Medical Center.